Age-sets
Tugen social organisation centres on the age set, or ipindo. The seven age-sets (ipinwek) are rotational, meaning at the end of one age-set new members of that generation are born.
Some Kalenjin peoples, include an age-set called Maina. However, among the Tugen, this age-set is extinct. Legend has it that the members of this ipindo were wiped out by the purko and ilkisongo maa subtribes during the loikop civil war among the maa tribes, it is said that the maina ageset aided the ilaikipiak maasai subtribe but most maina were driven and drowned in now lake nakuru while others were driven downwards the menenagai escarpment where they met their fate, few surivived to tell the tale. To avoid a recurrence, the community decided to retire the age-set. [7]
Ipindo was given out at initiation. By simple arrangements, there ought to be one ipindo between father and son. For example, a korongoro cannot beget a kipkoimet. Tugen don't consider a woman to have an age-set, hence she can marry any age-set except her father's. The Tugen say ma tinyei ipin Korgo, meaning they can marry any age-set, but they have their own age-set such as chesiran, masinya, and chepigwek. Age-sets:
- Chumo
- Sawe
- Korongoro
- Kipkoimet
- Kaplelach
- Kipnyigei
- Nyongi
Age sub-set (siritie)
In each age-set, initiates are bundled into siritie or what can be understood as a 'team'. There are three siritoik in an age-set (ibindo) namely:
- Chongin
- kapchepsuei
- Barnot (youth)
Initiations
Tugens are very diversified in terms of the types of initiation ceremonies. Female circumcision was abolished decades ago. Male initiation would graduate a male from boyhood into warrior status called (muren). After the warriorhood stage there was a ceremony called kuletap eito where the senior warrior class would be graduated into elder class. The women then during the precolonial period would similarly undergo kuletap kweet ceremony to achieve elderly class. [1]
Around 1930-1940s, the influx of nandi tradition and customs reached the tugenland, and most of the tugens especially from baringo south, mogotio, nakuru adopted the nandi initiation ways while the tugens from baringo central and north retained their old ways.
